ABSTRACT
The years 2004 and 2005 were in many respects incredibly successful ones for documentary films and filmmakers worldwide. Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) set a record for documentaries with a $119 million take at the American box office, Zana Briki and Ross Kauffman's Born Into Brothels (2004) received scores of critical accolades, including the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, and Luc Jacquet's March of the Penguins (2005) achieved remarkable success, both critically and financially, taking in over $100 million worldwide and winning the 2005 Best Documentary Oscar. Nevertheless, the role of documentary film in popular culture remains tenuous, particularly as a vehicle for political expression. In recent years, many legitimate attacks have been leveled at Michael Moore for his abuse of facts and misleading use of images in both Bowling for Columbine (2002) and Fahrenheit 9/11, raising public awareness of the subjectivity of the documentary form. Nonetheless, on 5 March 2006, the five nominees for Best Documentary Feature were described by a presenter as filmmakers who “know only the truth” of their stories. This statement illustrates the persistent conflation of an artistic enterprise (filmmaking) with the impossible ethical expectations inherent in the name of the form itself (documentary).
